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FilmSkool — a free film school

How to choose the RIGHT cinema lens

A rental-house perspective on how working DPs pick lenses based on budget, look, and iris control rather than specs alone. Helpful for anyone about to make their first real lens-package decision.

LensProToGo · 12 min · Intermediate · CIN · Cinematography · 2020

What you take away

Choose lenses for their character and workflow fit — a 'sharper' lens is rarely the right answer on its own.

Watch it

Filed under

Oscar winners for cinematography

Books on cinematography

Kit for this lesson

Canon RF 50mm F1.2 L USM — The portrait-adjacent normal
Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM — The RF standard zoom, stabilised
Canon RF 15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM — Canon’s wide zoom for the C70 and R5 C
Helios 44-2 58mm f/2 — The swirly Soviet prime — a look for the price of a meal
Panasonic LUMIX S5 II — Full-frame, open gate, phase detect at last
Panasonic LUMIX S5 IIX — The S5 II with raw out and ProRes internal

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